Haunted Mansion?

This is the Overholser Mansion, built in 1902 by a family that is considered in some ways to be among OKC's founding fathers. The home is now a museum, undergoing restoration (see the ladder?). There is a rumor that the family loved their home so much that they did not want to leave it behind when they passed.

The Haunted Plaza Court

This is one of my favorite buildings in town, and it's home to a handful of successful businesses - including my favorite hamburger joint, a wonderful bakery, a pub, and a YMCA. But rumor has it that if you find yourself here alone at night, you will hear other people in the hallways. The story as I heard it was this: Many decades ago, in the early 1900s, this building was host to a fraudulent and popular doctor. People put their faith in him to heal them of their cancers and other serious illnesses, when he in fact was only taking their money and putting on a show... so that a number of patients died of their diseases without ever having received proper care. And they are still there, looking for their treatment.

Deep Deuce

Deep Deuce is a district near downtown that has been undergoing a recent revival. Apparently this district was OKC's version of Harlem - the black cultural center for the city, where you could find all the good jazz music! Now it's got some neat, trendy restaurants and fancy condos... but still has a reputation for jazz music.

So, those buildings beyond Stow's Furniture... that is Deep Deuce (named thus because it centers around second street)

Fairlawn 3: Giving thanks

The above monument was erected in 1918 in honor of all armed forces enlistees.

The below is for the confederate soldiers.

I thought about saving these for Memorial Day or some other patriotic holiday, but gratitude should always be in fashion, so I'm leaving these in with Fairlawn week.

I've other pictures from Fairlawn that I find beautiful, but not everyone loves old cemeteries. Don't worry. Tomorrow we're back to the living.

Fairlawn 2: Statues

Fairlawn 1: At Rest

When I was entertaining some friends from Alaska, they asked me to show them something "old and cool" that they didn't have at home. I took them to Fairlawn Cemetery. They loved it... and so do I. I know that not everyone is into reminders of mortality, but here's the lowdown. Fairlawn is the oldest cemetery I'm aware of in the OKC metro. It is so old that it's segregated into white, black, and Jewish burial grounds. It's the only place in Oklahoma where I've seen above ground crypts. It's full of lovely statuary and history. If you know anything of Oklahoma history, it also has a veritable who's who of Oklahoma history buried within: The Overholsers, the Kirkpatricks, the Skirvins, and others. I love the place, and I'll promise not to fill a whole week with it.  The crypt below is rumored to be haunted. I think it looks like something out of a Poe story.

On Route 66... Ann's Chicken Fry

This used to be one of those incredible hole-in-the-wall places that only locals could identify for you. Now it's so flashy and perty that I can't imagine anyone could miss it - they even added a gift shop out back. But when I was little, it was a tiny, plain red brick diner, with no fancy murals, no pink cadillac, no gift shop - just dang good southern food and friendly people, and a waitress who saw me so often for so many years that she practically saw me grow up. Dad would tell me stories about when he was a kid, inspired from the memorabilia on the wall, and my folks would send me to play 50s music from the juke box (I always wanted to play "Snoopy and the Red Baron" and "Little Red Riding Hood"). Now I go in every few years to eat, and they still have freaking good chicken fry. Although it's a little strange, because I still expect it to be that cozy, plain red-brick diner I used to know, and the place has obviously grown since then.

On Route 66... 66 Bowl

I admit that I took these photos for selfish reasons. You see, 66 Bowl has been around since before I was born. My dad used to bowl here in a league before I was in grade school. The place must have been here for 50 years! I learned how to bowl here, I've visited the bar with friends and listened to live rockabilly music. It was announced a few weeks ago that the business and building was sold to an Indian grocer. Yep. Gonna be an exotic grocery store now; no more 66 Bowl. BUT. I really, really hope they keep that pin-shaped neon sign. It's kind of shabby, but I can't imagine driving down this stretch of Route 66 (known as 39th Expressway in town) without seeing it there.

On a side note, if I were a cool kid, I'd be at the Rockin' America festival going on right now: the biggest 80s Metal festival in the country is currently going on at the OKC Zoo Amphitheater. But this weekend is a bad weekend for me to spend the whole time partying... so instead I'll tell you how nifty it sounds, and maybe drive by and take a shot at the crowd if I get a chance.

Story Time

So as I was growing up, my Dad told me a story about Shepherd Mall. Shepherd Mall, he says, was named after the Shepherd sisters, who used to own some of the land the mall was built on. The mall was built on a former neighborhood; the people who owned the homes were bought out... all, that is, except for the Shepherds. But that didn't stop the mall, and it didn't stop the sisters. The mall was built next to them, and the parking lot for the mall was paved all around their home. They lived there until they died, and then the house was knocked down and the parking lot was completed. I can't tell you if this story is true, but I can tell you that my dad has lived in OKC for a long time, and I sometimes think about how forlorn their house must have looked, all alone in the parking lot.

This mall was a real mall when I was a kid, where people went to buy stuff, and where I went to trick-or-treat once or twice. Now it's full of offices, most of them government agencies of some variety.

As an aside, some of you may know that OKC has had some unseasonal flooding lately.  Here is a video I found of the street in front of the mall at flood stage.

The Gold Dome

Those who know OKC know the Gold Dome building on 23rd and Classen - it's one of our landmarks. Built in 1958 as one of the world's first geodesic domes, citizens rallied to save it in 2001 and now it is home to a handful of local businesses. Since it's so easy to see the outside, I thought I would share a few pics of the inside as well.

A Useless Fence

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I really don't think this buffalo is going anywhere! This is at the Harn Homestead, an educational/historical facility that hosts several events throughout the year for school field trips, the public, and private events. As for the buffalo... you can't hardly go anywhere in Oklahoma City without bumping into a large piece of buffalo art work. They were sold several years ago to raise money for the zoo's bison exhibit. I haven't spent a lot of time at Harn, but if you like zoos, you should really see ours. It's among the top zoos in the country and constantly improving. If you haven't been there in a couple of years, you should go back, because it's changing all the time.

Back to Work Monday Buildings

"The Oklahoman" was our local newspaper. It is now "The Daily Oklahoman" or "The Sunday Oklahoman" or "NewsOK.com".  And just as the name has changed, so too has its headquarters. Most locals know that the Gaylord Oklahoman is headquartered off of Broadway Extension as you head towards Edmond, in a large, modern, glass building. What they may not have noticed is that it used to be downtown near the train tracks, in this pretty Victorian-era structure.

Anniversary - the Past and Present

 For a few years my city's only claim to fame was the Murrah bombing. Sad, right? Of course the bombing is sad - it was awful and scary - but I am relieved that OKC finally has a reputation for things other than a terrorist attack and a huge tornado. That being said, I could never deny that it has become part of our identity. And for all the things I learned during that time period, I suppose it is part of mine as well.

It's important to remember for every one stranger willing to set off an explosion, 

there are thousands of strangers willing to help.  

That is the most important lesson I learned through this tragic event.

So for those who don't know (I lived here, so I don't know how common this knowledge is to everyone who didn't), the chainlink security fence put up after the bombing became a shrine of sorts. Families, locals and rescuers covered it with gifts and trinkets, flowers, rosaries, whatever meant something to them, covered the entire thing, all the way around. We couldn't bear to tear it down. It was a small source of comfort, a tangible grave marker and place to leave your prayers. A part of the fence was kept as part of the memorial, and people still leave things on it today, from all over the world. The families still hang photos on it. It has to be cleared periodically. Some items are left up, and some items are cycled in and out. The above photo was taken last week.


This is the new federal building, just a block or so away. It was built to be "bomb-proof", or so we are told; one of the safest buildings in the country. I would like to think that lightning would never strike the same place twice, but I guess it has happened. I thought it might turn into a model for other federal buildings around the country, but to my knowledge this hasn't happened. You can't park near it. It's glass and concrete are blast-resistant. It's designed to absorb and disperse force. It's eco-friendly. It's peaceful and industrial and pretty. It looks like it's been there this whole time, even though I literally watched as it was built. It has a little stream leading to the back door, and star-shaped benches.

For Lease #2

We have a very few of these old gas station buildings left - from the days when OKC was a lot smaller and you never pumped your own gas. This is one of the two I'm aware of, for sale or lease. Because it occupies a large lot on a busy intersection and has empty for awhile, I wonder if it will survive or just get plowed over to make room for something else.

Devon Energy Building Construction

It's Monday - back to work!  Are you going to work as hard as these guys?

I had to look hard to find a view down into this construction pit, because it is blocked off by tall barricades almost the entire way around. This is the start of foundation construction for the new Devon Energy building. The building will be 50 stories tall. Our current tallest building is the Chase Tower at 36 stories. It will certainly be changing our city forever.  I just hope they also build a parking garage to go with it...

The Marion

I walked out specifically to photograph this building for you. It intrigues me. The Marion used to be a fancy hotel in the early 1900s, and now it's a vacant shell of a building. I keep watching it hoping that someone will turn it into something fantastic, but it hasn't happened yet. Rumor has it that someone has tried to repair it, but ghosts scare away the contractors. :) It was a stop on the Ghouli ghost tour I took one year.

The Old Post Office

 

This picture is from the "old post office," a building which was a post office 100 years ago (literally) and is now used for something else. I don't know what. But the building has beautiful architecture and is on the National Register for Historic Buildings thingy-ma-jig.

Murrah Memorial Artist

 

I work next door to the Oklahoma City National Memorial, and I actually like that - it was surreal for a short period, as I am plenty old enough to remember the bombing and was living here at the time - but now I appreciate being around it daily. I think the Memorial changes more with the seasons than any other structure. I also think that the world has probably seen about 10,000 photographs of the reflecting pool and I will not make this 10,001. Part of the Memorial is the Plaza, which is just what it sounds like. The plaza that was attached to the original building. This is the part of the memorial I visit most often on my walks because it's the least visited portion (hopefully this makes sense to you). These steps go up to the plaza terrace, and I was amused to find that some artist had adorned them with a smiley face. I'd have been pretty ticked off had it been spray paint, but since it was chalk, all was forgiven, and I thought it worthy of a photo. Here you go, then. Part of the Memorial that you may never have noticed otherwise: the belly of the stairwell, complete with free cheer.

To ice, or not to ice...

The weather forecast tell us that Doom is coming at some point today (an ice storm, or favorite!). This is one of my favorite ice storm pictures, from one of our milder episodes. This is from the corner of NW 7th and Robinson downtown and shows three buildings built in the early 1900s. The building to the immediate left is Central High School (now an insurance building) and the one to the right is a Methodist church. The gold dome building is yet another church... This portion of Robinson is part of "Church Row,"  where many very cool churches were built from the late 1800s through the 1910s. I enjoy walking this stretch and reading the historical plaques many of the buildings sport.

The May Theatre

There are a handful of buildings around town that I fantasize about owning, or at least about what they could be but are not. I have thought longer and harder about no other building than I have about the May, and I seriously considered using it to begin a business venture (but alas, such things are for wealthier people than I). The May was built in 1941 and it used to be a movie theater, as you can see by the fabulous facade/marquee it still has. It was then converted and operated as an antique mall for several years and is now empty and for lease. If you are interested in this type of thing, there is an old photo of the May while it was new and shiny here, and if you are interested in historical factoids I found some of them at Cinema Treasures.